UK game developers are putting COVID-19 messaging in their games

A number of UK game developers have partnered with the UK government to promote Stay At Home COVID-19 messaging within their games.

By using geotargeting, games from Codemasters, Rebellion and King will feature important safety information to help stop the spread of Coronavirus.

we came to realise that technology within our games, which enables the remote updating of banners within the virtual environment, could be repurposed to assist with the Coronavirus communication effort

Stay At Home posters are currently already available with Codemasters’ phenomenonal racing simulator Dirt Rally 2.0. As part of the health campaign, Codemasters will be including more messages across its library of games across both Europe and the United States in the coming weeks.

“At Codemasters we came to realise that technology within our games, which enables the remote updating of banners within the virtual environment, could be repurposed to assist with the Coronavirus communication effort,” said VP of business development at Codemasters, Toby Evan-Jones.

“This week, through collaboration with Bidstack Group PLC (providers of the ad-replacement infrastructure), we began delivering a version of Public Health England’s ‘Stay Home Save Lives’ message into DiRT Rally 2.0. It’s fantastic to see conversations already being sparked amongst our community.”

“We’re delighted to be working with the DCMS on this excellent initiative,” said Co-founder and CEO of Rebellion, Jason Kingsley.

“We know how fundamentally beneficial video games, like Sniper Elite and Strange Brigade, and comics, like 2000 AD, have been and will continue to be for many of us during this extraordinary time.

“It makes total sense for us to help promote important public health messaging while keeping those fans entertained in the safety of their homes.”

Most importantly, Candy Crush creators King will begin including Coronavirus messaging within its mobile titles, including Candy Crush Saga. With the popularity of Candy Crush Saga among a huge range of demographics, this is a hugely important title in the campaign.